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The Last of Us in development for two years, no online planned

The Last of Us has been in development for two years, the game's creative director said. The two actors behind the main characters are also revealed.

The Last of Us was perhaps the most surprising revelation at the Spike TV Video Game Awards over the weekend. Sure, another post-apocalyptic game starring sort-of-zombies may not be the most original concept, but the game's developer roused up quite a lot of buzz: Naughty Dog. The developer is best known for their work on the Uncharted series, and only recently shipped Uncharted 3 to critical acclaim. So, where did Last of Us come from?

Apparently, a "secret team" formed within Naughty Dog after shipping Uncharted 2. Creative Director Neil Druckmann, who previously served as a writer on Uncharted 2, admitted to working on the game "for the last two years."

Druckmann also revealed the identities of the two protagonists of the game. Joel, described by Sony as "a brutal survivor," is played by Troy Baker--who stars as Booker Dewitt in the upcoming BioShock Infinite. Ellie, a "young teenage girl who's braver and wiser beyond her years," is played by Ashley Johnson--not Ellen Page as some had guessed. And, as with the Uncharted series, the actors will not only be providing their voices, but will also be performing the motion capture as well.

While the debut trailer suggested as much, it appears the game is aiming for a Mature rating, evidenced by the official site's age gate, and the 18 PEGI provisional rating on PlayStation's European site (via Eurogamer). This would be Naughty Dog's first foray into M-rated territory; their previous games have all been E and T.

The European game page also reveals yet another interesting factoid: The Last of Us promises no online play. Given Uncharted 2 and 3's focus on online multiplayer, Naughty Dog's return to a single player-only adventure should be a refreshing change of pace for some.